diff --git a/backup/restore.sh b/backup/restore.sh
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..1bb4608
--- /dev/null
+++ b/backup/restore.sh
@@ -0,0 +1,373 @@
+#!/bin/sh
+
+#######
+### restore mailcow from borgbackup repository
+### this assumes three things:
+###     1. standard mailcow-dockerized setup as per the docs
+###     2. backups made using the backup script from this git repo
+###     3. backups successfully written to your borg repo
+#######
+
+### text-formatting presets
+if command -v tput > /dev/null; then
+    bold=$(tput bold)
+    cyan=$(tput bold)$(tput setaf 6)
+    err=$(tput bold)$(tput setaf 1)
+    info=$(tput sgr0)
+    magenta=$(tput sgr0)$(tput setaf 5)
+    norm=$(tput sgr0)
+    ok=$(tput setaf 2)
+    width=$(tput cols)
+    yellow=$(tput sgr0)$(tput setaf 3)
+else
+    bold=''
+    cyan=''
+    err=''
+    info=''
+    magenta=''
+    norm=''
+    ok=''
+    width=80
+    yellow=''
+fi
+
+
+### trap
+trap trapExit 1 2 3 6
+
+### functions
+
+badDetails() {
+    if [ "$1" = 'empty' ]; then
+        writeLog 'done' 'error'
+        writeLog 'error' '10' "details:${2} cannot be blank/empty."
+        exitError 130
+    elif [ "$1" = 'dne' ]; then
+        writeLog 'done' 'error'
+        writeLog 'error' '11' "details:${2} file or directory does not exist."
+        exitError 131
+    fi
+}
+
+consoleError(){
+    printf "\n%s%s\n" "$err" "$2"
+    printf "Exiting.\n\n%s" "$norm"
+    exit "$1"
+}
+
+exitError() {
+    printf "%s[%s] --- %s execution completed with error ---\n%s" "$err" "$(stamp)" "$scriptName" "$norm" >> "$logfile"
+    exit "$1"
+}
+
+scriptHelp() {
+    textNewline
+    printf "%sUsage: %s [parameters]%s\n\n" "$bold" "$scriptName" "$norm"
+    textNewline
+    textblock "If a parameter is not supplied, its default value will be used. Switch parameters will remain DEactivated if NOT specified."
+    textNewline
+    exit 0
+}
+
+stamp() {
+    (date +%F' '%T)
+}
+
+textblock() {
+    printf "%s\n" "$1" | fold -w "$width" -s
+}
+
+textblockHeader() {
+    printf "\n%s%s***%s***%s\n" "$bold" "$magenta" "$1" "$norm"
+}
+
+textblockParam() {
+    if [ -z "$2" ]; then
+        # no default
+        printf "%s%s%s\n" "$cyan" "$1" "$norm"
+    else
+        # default parameter provided
+        printf "%s%s %s(%s)%s\n" "$cyan" "$1" "$yellow" "$2" "$norm"
+    fi
+}
+
+textNewline() {
+    printf "\n"
+}
+
+trapExit() {
+    printf "%s[%s] -- [ERROR] 99: Caught signal --%s\n" "$err" "$(stamp)" "$norm" >> "$logfile"
+    cleanup
+    printf "%s[%s] --- %s execution terminated via signal ---\n%s" "$err" "$(stamp)" "$scriptName" "$norm" >> "$logfile"
+    exit 99
+}
+
+writeLog() {
+    if [ "$1" = "task" ]; then
+        printf "%s[%s] -- [INFO] %s... " "$info" "$(stamp)" "$2" >> "$logfile"
+    elif [ "$1" = "done" ]; then
+        if [ -z "$2" ]; then
+            printf "%sdone%s --\n%s" "$ok" "$info" "$norm" >> "$logfile"
+        elif [ "$2" = "error" ]; then
+            printf "%sERROR%s --\n%s" "$err" "$info" "$norm" >> "$logfile"
+        elif [ "$2" = "warn" ]; then
+            printf "%swarning%s --\n%s" "$yellow" "$info" "$norm" >> "$logfile"
+        fi
+    elif [ "$1" = "error" ]; then
+        printf "%s[%s] -- [ERROR] %s: %s --\n%s" "$err" "$(stamp)" "$2" "$3" "$norm" >> "$logfile"
+    elif [ "$1" = "warn" ]; then
+        printf "%s[%s] -- [WARNING] %s --\n%s" "$yellow" "$(stamp)" "$2" "$norm" >> "$logfile"
+    elif [ "$1" = "info" ]; then
+        printf "%s[%s] -- [INFO] %s --\n%s" "$info" "$(stamp)" "$2" "$norm" >> "$logfile"
+    elif [ "$1" = "success" ]; then
+        printf "%s[%s] -- [SUCCESS] %s --\n%s" "$ok" "$(stamp)" "$2" "$norm" >> "$logfile"
+    fi
+}
+
+### parameter defaults
+# script related
+scriptPath="$( CDPATH='' cd -- "$( dirname -- "$0" )" && pwd -P )"
+scriptName="$( basename "$0" )"
+configDetails="$scriptPath/${scriptName%.*}.details"
+errorCount=0
+warnCount=0
+# logfile default: same location and name as script but with '.log' extension
+logfile="$scriptPath/${scriptName%.*}.log"
+# mailcow/docker related
+mcConfig='/opt/mailcow-dockerized/mailcow.conf'
+mcDockerCompose='/opt/mailcow-dockerized/docker-compose.yml'
+dockerStartTimeout=180
+dockerStopTimeout=120
+
+
+### check if user is root
+if [ "$( id -u )" -ne 0 ]; then
+    consoleError '2' "This script must be run as ROOT."
+fi
+
+
+### process startup parameters
+while [ $# -gt 0 ]; do
+    case "$1" in
+        -h|-\?|--help)
+            # display help
+            scriptHelp
+            ;;
+        *)
+            printf "\n%Unknown option: %s\n" "$err" "$1"
+            printf "Use '--help' for valid options.%s\n\n" "$norm"
+            exit 1
+            ;;
+    esac
+    shift
+done
+
+
+### pre-flight checks
+# docker installed?
+if ! command -v docker > /dev/null; then
+    consoleError '3' 'docker does not seem to be installed!'
+fi
+# borg installed?
+if ! command -v borg > /dev/null; then
+    consoleError '3' 'borgbackup does not seem to be installed!'
+fi
+# details file?
+if [ ! -f "$configDetails" ]; then
+    consoleError '1' "configuration file ($configDetails) cannot be found."
+fi
+# mailcow.conf?
+if [ ! -f "$mcConfig" ]; then
+    consoleError '1' "mailcow configuration file ($mcConfig) cannot be found."
+fi
+# docker-compose configuration?
+if [ ! -f "$mcDockerCompose" ]; then
+    consoleError '1' "docker-compose configuration ($mcDockerCompose) cannot be found."
+fi
+
+
+### read mailcow.conf and import vars
+# shellcheck source=./mailcow.conf.shellcheck
+. "$mcConfig"
+export PATH="/usr/local/sbin:/usr/local/bin:/usr/sbin:/usr/bin:/sbin:/bin"
+export COMPOSE_HTTP_TIMEOUT="$dockerStartTimeout"
+
+
+### start logging
+# verify logfile specification is valid
+if ! printf "%s" "$logfile" | grep -o / > /dev/null; then
+    # no slashes -> filename provided, save in scriptdir
+    logfile="$scriptPath/$logfile"
+elif [ "$( printf "%s" "$logfile" | tail -c 1 )" = '/' ]; then
+    # ends in '/' --> directory provided, does it exist?
+    if [ ! -d "$logfile" ]; then
+        if ! mkdir -p "$logfile" > /dev/null 2>&1; then
+            consoleError '1' "Unable to make specified log file directory."
+        fi
+    fi
+    logdir="$( cd "$logfile" 2> /dev/null && pwd -P )"
+    logfile="${logdir}/${scriptName%.*}.log"
+else
+    # full path provided, does the parent directory exist?
+    if [ ! -d "${logfile%/*}" ]; then
+        # make parent path
+        if ! mkdir -p "${logfile%/*}" > /dev/null 2>&1; then
+            consoleError '1' "Unable to make specified log file path."
+        fi
+    fi
+fi
+# write initial log entries
+if ! printf "%s[%s] --- Start %s execution ---\n%s" "$magenta" "$(stamp)" "$scriptName" "$norm" 2>/dev/null >> "$logfile"; then
+    consoleError '1' "Unable to write to log file ($logfile)"
+fi
+writeLog 'info' "Log located at $logfile"
+
+
+### get location of docker volumes
+dockerVolumeMail=$(docker volume inspect -f '{{ .Mountpoint }}' ${COMPOSE_PROJECT_NAME}_vmail-vol-1)
+printf "%s[%s] -- [INFO] Using MAIL volume: %s --%s\n" \
+    "$cyan" "$(stamp)" "$dockerVolumeMail" "$norm" >> "$logfile"
+dockerVolumeRspamd=$(docker volume inspect -f '{{ .Mountpoint }}' ${COMPOSE_PROJECT_NAME}_rspamd-vol-1)
+printf "%s[%s] -- [INFO] Using RSPAMD volume: %s --%s\n" \
+    "$cyan" "$(stamp)" "$dockerVolumeRspamd" "$norm" >> "$logfile"
+dockerVolumePostfix=$(docker volume inspect -f '{{ .Mountpoint }}' ${COMPOSE_PROJECT_NAME}_postfix-vol-1)
+printf "%s[%s] -- [INFO] Using POSTFIX volume: %s --%s\n" \
+    "$cyan" "$(stamp)" "$dockerVolumePostfix" "$norm" >> "$logfile"
+dockerVolumeRedis=$(docker volume inspect -f '{{ .Mountpoint }}' ${COMPOSE_PROJECT_NAME}_redis-vol-1)
+printf "%s[%s] -- [INFO] Using REDIS volume: %s --%s\n" \
+    "$cyan" "$(stamp)" "$dockerVolumeRedis" "$norm" >> "$logfile"
+dockerVolumeCrypt=$(docker volume inspect -f '{{ .Mountpoint }}' ${COMPOSE_PROJECT_NAME}_crypt-vol-1)
+printf "%s[%s] -- [INFO] Using MAILCRYPT volume: %s --%s\n" \
+    "$cyan" "$(stamp)" "$dockerVolumeCrypt" "$norm" >> "$logfile"
+
+
+### source configuration details file
+case "${configDetails}" in
+    /*)
+        # absolute path, no need to rewrite variable
+        # shellcheck source=./backup.details
+        . "${configDetails}"
+        ;;
+    *)
+        # relative path, prepend './' to create absolute path
+        # shellcheck source=./backup.details
+        . "./${configDetails}"
+        ;;
+esac
+writeLog 'info' "Configuration file: ${yellow}${configDetails}${info} imported"
+
+
+### verify borg variables
+# verify borg base directory
+writeLog 'task' 'Verify details:borgBaseDir'
+if [ -z "${borgBaseDir}" ]; then
+    badDetails empty 'borgBaseDir'
+elif [ ! -d "${borgBaseDir}" ]; then
+    badDetails dne 'borgBaseDir'
+fi
+export BORG_BASE_DIR="${borgBaseDir%/}"
+writeLog 'done'
+# check path to SSH keyfile
+writeLog 'task' 'Verify details:borgSSHKey'
+if [ -z "${borgSSHKey}" ]; then
+    badDetails empty 'borgSSHKey'
+elif [ ! -f "${borgSSHKey}" ]; then
+    badDetails dne 'borgSSHKey'
+fi
+export BORG_RSH="ssh -i ${borgSSHKey}"
+writeLog 'done'
+# check borg repo connect string
+writeLog 'task' 'Verify details:borgConnectRepo'
+if [ -z "${borgConnectRepo}" ]; then
+    badDetails empty 'borgConnectRepo'
+fi
+export BORG_REPO="${borgConnectRepo}"
+writeLog 'done'
+# check borg repo password
+writeLog 'task' 'Verify details:borgRepoPassphrase'
+if [ -z "${borgRepoPassphrase}" ]; then
+    # an empty repo passphrase is considered a mistake so throw an error
+    # if the user meant to enter an empty passphrase they should use 'NONE'
+    badDetails empty 'borgRepoPassphrase'
+elif [ "${borgRepoPassphrase}" = 'NONE' ]; then
+    # password intentionally blank, use but issue warning
+    export BORG_PASSPHRASE=''
+    writeLog 'done' 'warn'
+    writeLog 'warn' 'Using a borg repo with a blank password is an insecure configuration!'
+    warnCount=$((warnCount+1))
+else
+    export BORG_PASSPHRASE="${borgRepoPassphrase}"
+    writeLog 'done'
+fi
+# check borg repo keyfile location
+writeLog 'task' 'Verify details:borgKeyfileLocation'
+if [ -z "${borgKeyfileLocation}" ]; then
+    # will use default location
+    writeLog 'done'
+else
+    # verify keyfile location exists
+    if [ ! -f "${borgKeyfileLocation}" ]; then
+        badDetails dne 'bogKeyfileLocation'
+    fi
+    export BORG_KEY_FILE="${borgKeyfileLocation}"
+    writeLog 'done'
+fi
+# export borg remote path, if specified
+if [ -n "${borgRemote}" ]; then export BORG_REMOTE_PATH="${borgRemote}"; fi
+
+
+### create borg temp dir
+## python requires a writable temporary directory when unpacking borg and
+## executing commands. This defaults to /tmp but many systems mount /tmp with
+## the 'noexec' option for security. Thus, we will use/create a 'tmp' folder
+## within the BORG_BASE_DIR and instruct python to use that instead of /tmp
+
+# check if BORG_BASE_DIR/tmp exists, if not, create it
+if [ ! -d "${borgBaseDir}/tmp" ]; then
+    if ! mkdir "${borgBaseDir}/tmp" 2>/dev/null; then
+        writeLog 'error' '31' "Unable to create borg temp directory (${borgBaseDir}/tmp)"
+        exitError 31
+    fi
+fi
+export TMPDIR="${borgBaseDir}/tmp"
+
+
+### change to mailcow directory so docker commands run properly
+cd "$(dirname ${mcConfig})" || writeLog 'error' '100' "Could not change to mailcow directory." && exitError 100
+
+#TODO: stop containers
+#TODO: pull backup via borg
+#TODO: copy backups to correct docker volumes
+#TODO: copy additional files to correct locations
+#TODO: restart docker containers
+#TODO: optionally reindex dovecot (parameter)
+#TODO: delete downloaded backup (parameter)
+
+
+### exit gracefully
+writeLog 'success' "All processes completed"
+printf "%s[%s] --- %s execution completed ---\n%s" "$magenta" "$(stamp)" "$scriptName" "$norm" >> "$logfile"
+# note non-terminating errors
+if [ "$errorCount" -gt 0 ]; then
+    printf "%s%s errors encountered!%s\n" "$err" "$errorCount" "$norm" >> "$logfile"
+fi
+# note warnings
+if [ "$warnCount" -gt 0 ]; then
+    printf "%s%s warnings issued!%s\n" "$yellow" "$warnCount" "$norm" >> "$logfile"
+fi
+exit 0
+
+
+### error codes:
+# 1: parameter error
+# 2: not run as root
+# 3: borg or docker not installed
+# 10: null configuration variable in details file
+# 11: invalid configuration variable in details file
+# 99: TERM signal trapped
+# 100: could not change to mailcow-dockerized directory
+# 101: could not stop container(s)
+# 102: could not start container(s)
+# 110: borg exited with a critical error
+
+#EOF